Friday, November 4, 2011

Time has flown since my last post as October was starting. At the time, I was beginning a new venture - a sales space at the new cooperative market place downtown, the Rustic Sparrow. Well, now the space is up and running, and full of items for sale.

I've also gained a partner in the endeavor. My neighbor and long-time friend, Doug Eagleson is displaying quite a number of items and doing reasonably well. I'm forever grateful that he's willing to help me move large pieces into place and even help spruce up some items now and then. He also did some of the painting for me when I first set up.

Many of the pieces I'm selling are former "projects" that were sitting in my house, garage, or basement and never completed. To have a tiny bungalow with so much stuff has not been a good thing so being able to finish things and put them up for sale for others to enjoy has been very practical. What I've discovered is that painting and renewing items is a source of great joy - a truly creative opportunity. A cabinet that was in my bedroom but relegated to the basement had a satisfactory coat of paint on it but I was able to add more paint, distress it, add a reproduction of a vintage print, and now it's an especially charming piece ready to find a home.

Even though I didn't need to, I purchased some items at garage sales a couple of weeks ago, including a 2-drawer nightstand that had been a dark wood in a heavy Spanish style typical of the 70s, later painted white to look shabby chic but still not quite working. I painted it in my favorite new shade of blue with touches of green and yellow, decoupaged some birds and flowers on it, and I love it; I can imagine a little girl enjoying it in her bedroom.

The new challenge has been finding a place where I can paint and create my furniture transformations. My home office/TV room just doesn't have enough room; the garage and basement will be too cold (and uninspiring) this winter, and that left me smack dab in the middle of my dining room. It actually felt pretty good to get rid of furniture with minor function that had been in the dining room; in its place I brought in a barrister's book case that had been sitting in the garage. On top of it sit an old silver pitcher and a crystal biscuit container for all my brushes and inside the book case are my paints, brushes, tools, sandpaper, and miscellaneous other items I need while I work - and it's absolutely great! I can enjoy the view out of my French doors or the front living room windows, and watch TV while having everything at hand. A large cardboard moving box, flattened, covers and protects my dining room table. I've even replaced the chandelier mentioned in a previous post with something that creates more light and casts fewer shadows. It's a different look - but definitely one I'm enjoying. I'll take some photos and provide a tour in a future blog, hopefully very soon.